Deep Change: : Discovering the Leader Within

Citation

Sparks, W.L. (1999), "Deep Change: : Discovering the Leader Within", Journal of Organizational Change Management, Vol. 12 No. 1, pp. 67-69. https://doi.org/10.1108/jocm.1999.12.1.67.1

In his most recent book, Deep Change: Discovering the Leader Within, Robert Quinn provides an insightful analysis of both personal change and organizational transformation. Using colorful examples from sports and his own consulting and research experiences, he illustrates the difficulty and resistance that deep change faces in traditional organizations. Summary exercises and points for discussion are provided at the end of each chapter, allowing the text to be an interactive and stimulating catalyst for both personal and organizational assessment.

Quinn does more than analyze and explore current buzzwords such as “empowerment” and “visionary leadership”. He defines and illustrates these concepts with a precision and rigor that are rare in the management field. Building on his previous books, Becoming a Master Manager (1996) and Beyond Rational Management: Mastering the Paradoxes and Competing Demands of High Performance (1991), Quinn continues his discussion of leadership, focussing on the competing, often conflicting, values and demands that inhibit transformational leadership development. In Deep Change, he provides the theoretical and philosophical framework to support his earlier concept of “master managers” that emerge in transformational cycles within organizations.

Deep Change is divided into four sections and begins with a compelling argument for why this topic is timely. Based on years of research and consultation, Quinn effectively demonstrates that today’s organizations are increasingly faced with two options: deep, radical change or slow death. Quinn differentiates between first‐order, incremental change and second‐order, irreversible transformation. His concept of “deep change” refers to second‐order change, which has also been called “revolutionary change” (Greiner, 1972). Quinn illustrates that when confronted with the choice of making a deep change or remaining the same, it is easier and safer to choose the status quo. He argues that to choose the status quo is, in effect, to choose a slow death. Using the analogy of Joseph Campbell’s (1949) heroic journey, he illustrates that individual transformation can only occur when the hero leaves behind the stability and security of the known and embraces the risks and uncertainty of the unknown. Quinn is correct to assert that both heroic transformation and deep, personal change require faith and courage.

In the second section, Quinn discusses the deep change that must take place at a personal level before organizational transformation can begin. He places responsibility for both personal and organizational change directly on the reader. Change and empowerment cannot be given or delegated; they must be continually sought after and seized. Continuous learning and growth are critical for change and development to occur. Quinn demonstrates what other recent authors have noted (Vaill, 1996): continual self‐directed learning is crucial for individual leadership transformation.

The third section of Deep Change examines change in the context of the organization. Quinn discusses the “tyranny of competence” that occurs in organizations when individuals with technical competence are treated as indispensable and separate from the larger team. He identifies the following roles and paradigms in organizations:

1. 1.

   Individual contributor (technical paradigm).

2. 2.

   Manager (transactional paradigm).

3. 3.

   Leader (transformational paradigm).

Quinn demonstrates that effective leaders operating from the transformational paradigm view the organization not just in technical terms, but as a political and moral system that transcends the rational planning process.

In the final section, Quinn identifies common barriers to personal change and organizational transformation. This section provides both a fundamental discussion of concepts and a theoretical framework that highlights the complexity of personal and organizational development and change. Three barriers inhibit change:

1. 1

   bureaucratic culture;

2. 2

   embedded conflict;

3. 3

   personal time constraints.

These barriers exist in any organizational context as a natural result of the organizing process. Taken together, they send a very clear message to members of the organization: don’t rock the boat. When such conformance and compliance occur, Quinn refers to the organization as a well‐structured “funeral parlor” on the path to slow death. Additionally, Quinn illustrates both the complexity and interrelatedness of the competing demands for leadership (transformational roles vs. transactional roles) and empowerment (mechanistic view “top‐down” vs. organic view “bottom‐up”). Quinn is most effective in this final section in demonstrating the complex, often paradoxical demands that are required for transformational leadership.

In Deep Change, Quinn’s appeal is his exceptional ability to communicate honestly about personal change and organizational transformation. In a field saturated with meaningless jargon and management fads, Deep Change provides a rigorous framework for discussing complex ideas. Quinn does not offer a quick fix or a guaranteed program for success. Rather, he discusses both the personal risks and internal satisfaction that come from making deep changes. Because individuals do not easily surrender autonomy and control, organizational change must begin with personal change. The pain and risk associated with deep change are real, but so too is the alternative of slow death. Deep Change provides inspiration for courageous seekers of personal and organizational transformation, tempered by the realization that there are no guarantees for success. But you will avoid dying slowly.